Alliance... » John Elway is looking for his fourth head coach

ENGLEWOOD Brendan Langley Jersey , Colo. (AP) — in six seasons after firing Vance Joseph for presiding over the Denver Broncos‘ worst two-year stretch since the late 1960s.Elway acknowledged being part of the problem in the Broncos’ 20-28 record since their Super Bowl 50 parade, including 11-21 under Joseph.“The first guy I look at is the guy in the mirror,” Elway said Monday. “And I’m just as responsible for this, if not more, than anybody else because it’s my job to make sure that we win more football games. And so I take full responsibility for that.”It was Joseph who took the fall, however, fired with two years and about $6 million left on his contract.“Vance is a good man. He worked his tail off,” Elway said. “And unfortunately, we didn’t get it done. We didn’t win enough football games and ultimately that’s what we have to do.”Elway almost fired Joseph last year after a 5-11 debacle but gave him a second chance. He got no similar reprieve after going 6-10.“It’s disappointing not being able to finish what we started, but I’m incredibly proud of the players and coaches for how they fought and worked every week,” Joseph said in a statement. “I also appreciate the support staffs who put in countless hours behind the scenes helping our team. This is a special place with great fans.”The Broncos immediately sought permission to interview Steelers offensive line coach and former Titans head coach Mike Munchak, Bears defensive coordinator Vic Fangio and Patriots defensive coordinator Brian Flores.Later Monday, the Broncos added former Colts head coach Chuck Pagano, a native of Boulder, Colorado, to their wish list and also asked the Los Angeles Rams for permission to interview 35-year-old quarterbacks coach Zac Taylor.“I will continue to do the best I can, knowing we’re going to try to win football games. We’re going to compete for world championships,” Elway said. “That’s what I’m about. I hate to lose. I hate it more now than I ever have. And we’re going to do everything we can to get us back on track … and get us back to completing for world championships.”Elway said the franchise’s winningest coach, Mike Shanahan, whom he considered re-hiring a year ago, isn’t in the mix “at this point in time.” Nor is former Broncos assistant Adam Gase, who was fired by Miami, on his wish list.Elway indicated that Gary Kubiak, his senior personnel adviser, might move back onto the field as an offensive assistant for the new coach. Kubiak stepped down two years ago over health concerns 11 months after leading the franchise to its third Super Bowl victory.Elway insisted the Broncos’ opening is just as attractive today as it was then, when Joseph called the opportunity the best in football because it required a reboot and not a rebuild.Yet the Broncos didn’t innovate as quickly as other teams that incorporated more of their prospects’ college DNA into their playbooks, like the AFC West rival Kansas City Chiefs with Patrick Mahomes and the Baltimore Ravens with Lamar Jackson.“I think we just haven’t evolved here,” star cornerback Chris Harris Jr. said. “I think after the Super Bowl we kind of just got stagnant. We haven’t evolved. We’ve got to figure out how we can evolve on offense, defense, special teams and everything, get better as players. We have to evolve with the times of the NFL. We’re behind right now.”The Broncos are mired in a three-year playoff drought. They lack a franchise quarterback like the ones the Packers, Browns and Jets have in place to help them lure their next head coach. They haven’t had a title sponsor for their stadium for several seasons. And they need a massive makeover to modernize a jalopy of an offense that sputtered behind free agent quarterback Case Keenum.Team president Joe Ellis insisted there was ownership stability even as a family feud has gone public with Pat Bowlen’s relatives haggling over the future of the franchise while the family patriarch, who has Alzheimer’s, comes up for a possible Hall of Fame election Feb. 2.Then there’s Elway, a hands-on, high-standard GM with a Hall of Fame gold jacket who has little patience for losing, tried to hire Shanahan a year ago and didn’t cut Joseph any slack after trading away perennial Pro Bowlers Aqib Talib and Demaryius Thomas.“Vance was on board with every decision that we made. It wasn’t one where I was going off and saying, ‘We’re doing this,'” Elway said. “The decisions that were made were joint decisions, so we’ll leave it at that.”With Keenum at quarterback Bradley Chubb Jersey , the Broncos’ top selling point from a player perspective is probably the league’s top pass-rushing duo of Von Miller and Bradley Chubb, who combined for 26½ sacks.“I’d like to think that I’m a coach’s dream,” Miller said. “We’ve got a lot of big-time players here. We’ve got Bradley Chubb, who’s coming into his second year. Denver’s a great city. Denver’s a great place to come coach. It’s a great franchise to be a part of, known for winning and all types of wonderful stuff.“So, I think the Denver Broncos organization will be the main attraction for the next head coach.”Elway concurred, suggesting, “People may disagree, but we’re not that far off.” Calvin Anderson has a puzzling talent that goes beyond blocking big defensive lineman.The Denver Broncos rookie offensive tackle has a knack for quickly solving a Rubik’s Cube, even if it’s behind his back or blindfolded.He’s so good, in fact, that Rubik’s Cube signed him this week as a brand ambassador — the first professional athlete to serve in that role.The 23-year-old Anderson will get to travel to international events on behalf of the company, while also producing content for Rubik’s and publicly supporting various endeavors by the company.“I would never have imagined that one day I would be a brand ambassador for the Cube the first time I picked it up,” Anderson told The Associated Press. “It’s unbelievable.”Oh, and get this: One of the other perks he gets is his own personal Calvin Anderson-branded cubes.“Calvin’s sportsmanship and ability to bridge both physical and mind sports effectively make him an ideal brand ambassador for Rubik’s,” Christoph Bettin, CEO of Rubik’s Brand Limited, said in a statement. “We are delighted to welcome him.”Anderson was signed by New England as an undrafted free agent and claimed off waivers by New York in May. He was signed to Denver’s active roster off the New York Jets‘ practice squad on Oct. 1, and has been inactive his first three games with the Broncos.Anderson told the AP in July while he was in training camp with the Jets that he first started trying to solve Rubik’s Cube puzzles in middle school while growing up in Texas. He estimated he has solved thousands of the six-sided cubes with the white, blue, red, green, yellow and orange squares.Anderson has degrees in mathematical economics and religion with a minor in business from Rice. He transferred to Texas to focus fully on football, but is now working on a master’s in finance.So, problem solving and puzzles are second nature for him.“This opportunity is particularly special because of how pivotal the Rubik’s Cube has been in my intellectual development growing up,” Anderson said. “To now be in a position to represent the company that created the cube feels incredible.”BLESSED JETBlessuan Austin has waited for this chance from the moment he was drafted by the Jets in the sixth round in April.So, when the rookie cornerback finally got cleared by team doctors and practiced for the first time in the NFL this week, he couldn’t help but get fired up on the field.“I’m in love with the game,” Austin said. “I’ve got that 9-year-old love for the game again. You go through so many years playing the game, you kind of take it for granted, subconsciously. So, to be away from it for a little while — a long time, actually — and to come back, you appreciate the little things. You know, go out there, put your helmet on, buckle up your chin strap and this is the highest level you can do it at.”Austin had been rehabbing a knee injury suffered in his final season at Rutgers — the second straight year a torn anterior cruciate ligament in the same knee kept him away from playing the game he loves.“It definitely tested my patience,” said Austin, from Queens in New York. “There were definitely a couple of times throughout the process where I felt like I could go and then two days, three days later Courtland Sutton Jersey , something new popped up and they’d be like, ‘OK, maybe in another week, you’ll be all right.’“From that to now, to finally put that behind me and shelf it, it’s something I’m happy with.”Austin remains on the Jets’ reserve/non-football injury list, but being cleared for practice means the team has three weeks to decide whether to put him on the active roster or place him on the season-ending injured reserve list if he’s not fully ready to play.But, he certainly made a good first impression on the coaching staff.“That was a guy that was excited to be at practice, I know that,” coach Adam Gase said. “He was flying around. I think he was sick and tired of running on the side. For him to be able to be out there, he was legitimately — you saw a guy that was really excited to be out there. He was making life miserable for a lot of the wide receivers.”Austin had 41 tackles, 14 passes defensed, one interception and one sack as a sophomore for the Scarlet Knights, and was being considered a potential second- or third-round pick. Then, came the injuries the next two seasons, but the Jets had seen enough potential to give him a shot.Now, Austin is looking forward to proving the team right. And, the first step came with his first NFL practice.“I was pretty pumped, you know?” a smiling Austin said. “Just to know how fast the game can be taken away from you. That’s probably one of the biggest lessons I learned. Now, I just give it my all, just go hard and give it 100% so when the day’s over, I don’t have any regrets. That was someone I regretted when I got hurt, that I didn’t give it my all out there. So, when I was hurt, I was wishing I could get out there and do what I really think I was capable of doing.”BOUNCING AROUNDLinebacker Vince Biegel is in his third year in the NFL and already playing for his fourth defensive coordinator. And last week for the Miami Dolphins, he made his first career start.“That’s the life of the NFL,” Biegel said. “If you don’t adapt, you won’t be here for long.”Biegel was a fourth-round draft pick by the Packers in 2017. Last year they waived him, and he played on special teams for the Saints. The Dolphins acquired him last month in the trade that sent veteran linebacker Kiko Alonso to the Saints.The former Wisconsin linebacker is now trying to find some job security with the winless Dolphins as they rebuild.“I want this team to be tough,” coach Brian Flores said, “and I think he brings that.”HELPFUL HALLThe Pro Football Hall of Fame partnered with SignGlasses LLC to give visitors who are deaf or hard of hearing an opportunity to better experience the museum.SignGlasses developed some innovative technology that’s designed to expand and enhance communication access options. It will be used in the museum’s theaters, and guests will be able to use smart glasses that include captioning during the presentations.The Hall and SignGlasses will also co-host an annual Deaf Awareness Day at the Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio, during the course of the three-year agreement.“We are pleased to bring this enhancement to the Hall so all visitors can be immersed in our great museum experience that is centered around the inspiring stories from America’s favorite sport,” Pro Football Hall of Fame Vice President of Exhibits/Museum Services Saleem Choudhry said.SEEING THE FUTUREThe NFL Players Association and NFL Media agreed this week to a multiyear deal to broadcast the NFLPA Collegiate Bowl live on NFL Network.The NFLPA’s all-star college showcase will air exclusively on the year-round network home of the NFL through 2024 as a result of the agreement.The ninth annual game is scheduled for 7 p.m. EST on Jan. 18, 2020, at the Rose Bowl Stadium in Pasadena, California.